Power Play
by Nekobaghira
Summary: All-New X-Factor is employed by Serval industries whose goal is to help people. Serval Industries needs their team to be more than just a strike force, they need a "power play".


Power Play - by Neko and Nicopony

All-New X-Factor is employed by Serval industries whose goal is to help people. Serval Industries needs their team to be more than just a strike force, they need a "power play".

~oOo~

Remy was fidgeting in the corporate office used for Serval CEO Harrison Snow's suit fittings and tailoring. The room was set up with material, mirrors and a chaise lounge. The room also had a wet bar, a couple of televisions and a monitoring system. Two elegant room dividers specially made with Serval's logo and coloring decorated opposite ends of the room. The tailor was getting irritated with Remy's inability to remain stationary.

"Please, Mr. LeBeau, I need you to stand still," said Mr. Hill, Harrison Snow's personal tailor. Snow had called Hill in to fit Remy and Pietro for suits. Whatever the purpose of the suit fitting, Remy didn't know, but Snow wanted his corporate team looking perfect.

"I can buy a suit. I don't need one made for me," quipped Remy. The thief had more than enough money put by, but preferred to spend his "hard-earned" gains on things like high-end electronics and customized playing cards. Mr. Hill ignored Remy and kept marking, pinning and measuring the fine, dark-gray fabric. Disgruntled, Remy shifted his weight and crossed his arms. He was going to argue more when Harrison Snow walked in to see how the fitting was progressing.

"Hello Remy, how's things?" Harrison Snow walked over to the bar and poured himself a drink then sat down on the chaise lounge. He unbuttoned his suit jacket, rested his arm on the chaise lounge and crossed his legs at the ankles. He was preparing himself for a small battle of wills with Gambit.

"Harry, seriously, I can buy a really nice expensive suit. I don't need one made for me," Remy knew he was being a little childish over the matter but he had other things to do rather than spend time with a tailor. He wasn't going to tell Harry that though, there were some things he wanted to keep to himself. He had not completely bought into Serval's "wanting to help people" spiel. He gestured at the soon-to-be suit. "What'm I supposed t'do with a suit like this anyway?"

Snow kept his reaction to being called "Harry" in check. While it annoyed him, there was no need to let Remy know how much it irritated him. Cajoling Remy was becoming more work than he was expecting. However, Snow had already reaped results from this new team. Lorna had proved what an asset Remy was, which kept Snow from telling Lorna that Gambit had to go.

"I know you can buy a suit, but I wanted to do this for the Serval team. You'll need proper attire for corporate events," Snow informed Remy and ignored the thief's disgusted expression at the word 'corporate.'

"Pietro had no problem with his fitting," Snow added, hoping that would spark an ego type reaction thus forcing Remy to behave and get the suit made. He smiled his usual easy-going smile to appease Remy, though he wasn't sure it ever worked on him. Snow suspected he'd have a long way to go to get Remy's trust.

Mentioning Pietro only seemed to make Remy more irritable. "What kind of corporate event?" he asked, squinting his dark eyes at Snow in suspicion. "Like a meeting or something?" His tone conveyed the idea of sitting in a meeting to be tantamount to Medieval torture. From experience, Remy knew Harrison Snow was vague with his directives, you had to ask questions.

"If you must know specifics, the purpose for this particular fitting is for a charity event. In addition, as a representative of Serval Industries super hero team, you should look the part. This will be a chance to let the other event attendees know the team and become more familiar with our activities." Snow took a drink and waited for Remy to argue with him or question him as Remy did on a regular basis. "Think of this as your other Serval uniform. Or, if you prefer, a disguise. You're certainly not unfamiliar with donning a suit to gain access to...exclusive venues." Snow was well-aware of LeBeau's extracurricular activities as a thief, and his most recent and spectacular dismantling of vulture capitalist Borya Cich's technological horde of ill-gotten goods (many bearing the Serval logo).

Remy was mollified by this, his posture somewhat more relaxed and less defensive. While it annoyed him, Remy allowed the tailor to continue his work. Mr. Hill gave Harrison a glance of thanks, then continued to finish up the fitting. Harrison smiled inwardly to himself on winning this battle of wills with Remy.

"So you want me t'reinforce the helping people motto, right? What people is a fancy-suit party going to help?" Remy challenged. "A benefit to buy off Congressmen? Raising awareness for secret off-shore accounts? Or is it some sort of tax shelter thing?"

"You're aware of UNICEF, aren't you?" Snow said casually, peering into his drink with an expression of nonchalance. "Humanitarian relief for abandoned and orphaned children, efforts to end child trafficking…" As Snow spoke, he knew he was slowly reeling LeBeau in.

If Remy was embarrassed by being proven wrong, he didn't show it. Instead he asked: "Is there anything expected of me while I'm there? I mean, I can write a check to UNICEF as fast as any businessman." Remy wanted to know every detail, which he also knew he wouldn't get.

"Remy, not everyone can don a lycra uniform, fire up their superpowers, and literally go out and save the world," Snow chided. "Charitable donations give us a way to do so. And as it's a charity gala, I'd like you to go, have a good time, and mingle." Harrison smiled at Remy. "It's a chance to network with New York's upper-crust."

Their conversation was interrupted when Mr. Hill said to Remy: "Thank you Mr. LeBeau, we're done. Let me remove the material and you can be on your way. I'll drop the suits off when they are finished." Mr. Hill started to quickly take all of the items off Remy, knowing the man was antsy.

"Suits? Ya makin' more than one?" Remy glared at Snow. Harrison merely smiled.

"Yes Mr. LeBeau, at least three." Mr. Hill looked at Harrison Snow and nodded.

"Thank you, Aaron." Snow liked to be personal with staff and address them by their first names. He believed it showed them he was interested in them. He got up and shook Mr. Hill's hand as the tailor departed the room.

Remy and Snow also left the room, Remy heading to his apartment to tend to his cats and make a few calls. Snow watched him go, then called his assistant. He still had a few more details for the charity event to finish up. He also wanted to check in with the shopping assistant he had assigned to Lorna to help her with the dresses, shoes and whatever else she needed. It was never a bad thing to make the leader of your superhero team feel great. The appreciative effort would be a reward when he would need it.

~oOo~

Lorna was going through her schedule for the day and she wasn't pleased to see shopping at the top of her list. Normally, she would be thrilled, but today she wasn't in the mood for it. She knew about the charity gala event and that having the right attire was important. However, her thoughts were all over the place, from missions going awry (but ending well) to hurting one of Remy's kittens, which soured her shopping gene. Shopping should be fun. Though she supposed it would take her mind off of the things she was currently worrying over.

She was beating herself up over hurting Remy's kitten, Oliver. Lorna had sent his kitten flying through the air. Luckily, Remy stopped her from flinging the cat across the room. Remy hadn't since mentioned the incident, but he seemed a trifle nervous around her and she regretted momentarily losing her temper. Her guilt didn't stop her from justifying the action because the little shit had scratched her for no reason! Calming breath. She decided she would make it up to the kitten with a present and that would make things better between her and Remy. Maybe a little bell around Oliver's scrawny neck would warn her of his approach.

Not long ago, Polaris lead the team into a trap. In the end, the team was able to get out and they accomplished their end goal of saving the kidnapped mutants. It was an eye-opening experience for her. The mutants, while grateful they were out of a mad doctor's clutches, were not happy with one of the team members who helped save them. They threatened revenge on her brother. And as leader she would have to factor in both Pietro's and Remy's enemies. While she wasn't expecting leading to be easy, she didn't realize how complicated it could be either.

At least she had one really good positive: complete control of leading a team for Serval Industries. She was amazed at how important that was to her and feeling in control was a good thing. It was her chance to show everyone what she could do and she was going to do her very best. Harrison Snow believed in her, propped her up and gave her a lot of freedom with her team. There weren't many who expressed confidence in her control and abilities. Serval provided a lot of resources to accomplish the tasks the company needed done. She smiled to herself, the toys alone were just amazing. The money Harrison was allocating to this project was incredibly generous.

There was a knock at the door which pulled her away from her thoughts. She was expecting the personal shopping assistant but when she opened the door, it was Harrison Snow. "Good morning, Lorna."

"Harrison, come in," Lorna opened the door wider to allow him into the room.

"How are things going?" Harrison was genuinely concerned about his super hero team. He viewed them as an asset; a way to accomplish things his company could not through traditional means.

"Good, good. No problems. We're preparing for the UNICEF Charity Ball." Lorna waited for Harrison to tell her why he was visiting. Normally, they would just meet in his office.

"I know things will get very busy prior to the event, so I thought I'd stop by and check on members of the team. I am anticipating that an award will be bestowed upon the company. I've prepared a speech for you...things that would be good for the people attending to know about Serval. Since I will not be attending, I think it would perfect for you as leader of X-Factor to accept on my behalf." Harrison grinned at her and handed her index cards with notes on them. She noted his handwriting was neat and would be easy to read.

"I can have those transcribed into a small ear piece with a recording. All you would need to do is recite what you hear. However, I thought you'd want to make the words your own." Harrison was curious to see how receptive Lorna would be to those types of devices. She unknowingly had a nanobot implanted in her eye that transmitted information back to Serval. He justified the intrusion as a more efficient way of collecting data and he did not want to worry her about it. He felt no need to tell her. If it benefited his company, he felt no qualms about it. It was also first hand information on how his super hero team performed.

"No need for an ear piece. I'll use the note cards." Lorna was genuinely impressed with some of Serval's accomplishments written on the cards. "I'll take care of it, Harrison." Lorna looked at him confidently, she could easily make a speech.

"Good, thank you. I'll leave you to your shopping. Your assistant should be arriving shortly." Harrison exited the apartment just as the shopping assistant had arrived. Harrison nodded at the assistant, turned back and smiled at Lorna, then walked away.

As Harrison was leaving, Lorna's personal shopping assistant arrived with a few others. They had loads of packages in tow and began to bring the items into Lorna's apartment. The assistant assigned to her walked up with a big smile on her face and an outstretched hand, "I'm Charlotte, your shopping assistant and I've got all sorts of things for you to try on."

Lorna shook her hand, "I'm Lorna Dane, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Charlotte had an excited look on her face, it was clear shopping was her passion. And it appeared to Lorna that she just became a life sized Barbie doll, which made her smile and lifted her mood.

Lorna looked in awe of all of the accessories, shoes, jewelry and hairpieces the young lady had brought to her apartment. A seamstress had made three dresses for Lorna. Charlotte had already seen the dresses and had the company photo of Lorna which she took with her when she shopped. Lorna's hair was a bright emerald green and she needed to account for that in her choices. Charlotte went out and picked up everything that would go with the dresses. All Lorna had to do was select what she liked.

To Lorna's surprise, it took a lot longer than she ever thought to pick out so many items to go with her dresses. Yes, she had gone shopping before. But it was usually to pick up something specific, like her beloved Christian Louboutins (paid full price, but she just couldn't resist!). It had been a long time since she had gone all out with having to pick and choose from so many things. She had to admit, how much nicer it was not having to stop into store after store, she also noted her feet were happier about that too.

She ordered lunch for her and Charlotte, and she got to know her really well by mid-afternoon. She discovered she was having a great time with this shopping experience. Once every item she wanted was selected, Lorna helped the assistant package up all the rest of the items to go back to the shops. Lorna offered to go with her to return the items. Charlotte said it wasn't necessary, and that she would have help, but Lorna insisted on going with her into the city.

While in the company car Lorna reflected on the day, she had never spent so much time being catered to. She had tried on everything. In addition, she discovered Charlotte had a talent for mixing and matching items. Lorna was in a great mood, this was exactly the thing she needed to take her mind off of the things that had been bothering her this morning. Lorna needed one more item and felt she should pick it up herself. She didn't want to bother Charlotte with this even though she had offered several times to get whatever it was Lorna wanted.

Lorna waved goodbye to Charlotte and her crew in the middle of the shopping district. She told them there was no need to wait for her. Lorna could find her own way back to Serval Industries. When you were the Mistress of Magnetism, needing a car wasn't that important. The flight back would make her feel good.

She found a small boutique pet shop. Once she walked in, she was amazed at all of the items you could buy for pets. She walked to the cat isle and was a little overwhelmed by the sheer amount of items available for cats. This gift was going to more challenging than she thought. She eventually picked out a feather toy, a string toy and some catnip filled mice. On second thought, she put the catnip back, realizing that would make the cats only crazier than they already were. After she paid for for the cat toys, she went to a general store for boxes and wrapping paper. She couldn't believe she was going to bribe Remy's cat into liking her. She shook her head in amusement, then flew home.

~oOo~

Remy was late. He had gotten a call from Linda Kwan, head of Serval's Public Relations department, telling him where he needed to be and that she would have his suit, dress shoes and tie waiting for him. He casually informed her in his lazy drawl that he had matters to attend to first, the matters being feeding and playing with his cats. Kwan informed him that in this instance, being fashionably late was not acceptable. Kwan's management style was to have everything squared away well in advance to ensure things proceeded as planned…exactly as she planned. Having a wildcard like Remy LeBeau under her charge was not something she was accustomed to. Kwan needed Dane and LeBeau at the Cipriani Wall Street and seated in time for the ceremony that was to take place.

"I understand your commitments, Mr. LeBeau," Kwan said casually. "But please realize that Ms. Dane will be awaiting your arrival and she is not exactly the most patient individual."

At this, Remy relented. He could care less what Serval wanted or expected of him, but looking out for Lorna and avoiding her ire was another matter.

Linda Kwan's job was to make sure that the public was aware of Serval Industries activities, which included press releases, media buys, and organized events to help promote the company. Now with a new superhero team representing Serval Industries, her job was to make sure the team was managed according to her vision. At her first encounter with Mr. LeBeau, the vision came to her quickly. His expression upon arrival at Serval Industries corporate offices was one of admiration, and his comment: "This is nice," was more directed at Kwan than their immediate surroundings. He was charming, handsome, and boyishly playful; all qualities Kwan could shape into a very nice package.

While Pietro was speedy as ever in his preparations (earning bonus points in Kwan's estimation), Lorna was still in fact primping and preening. No matter, Kwan thought. Dane was the centerpiece in her display. But she needed one last accessory: Remy LeBeau. Since Kwan anticipated the challenge of wrangling LeBeau into a suit and off to the charity event, she decided to take matters into her own hands.

Remy arrived at the room she had specified. Kwan wasn't even surprised by his street clothing. She directed him into the bathroom where she expected him to shower and shave. While he was doing that, she arranged everything he would need to get ready for the event in plain sight. When Remy emerged from the bathroom wearing one of the terrycloth bathrobes and a towel draped around his neck, Kwan didn't allow her expression to change. She made herself focus and pointed to the closet where his suit was hanging.

"If you would please-," she began but was interrupted by the buzzing of her cell phone.

She meant to leave the room while he dressed but her phone rang and she had to answer questions in regards to details for the event. She purposely turned her back to him. She was so focused on her conversation that she didn't realize Remy was toweling off and putting on the suit.

When she glanced in his direction and saw he was half-dressed, she was momentarily speechless. She completely missed him putting on the pants, but he was still shirtless. "I didn't mean change right-," she began and gestured at the privacy screen.

"Hmm?" he said in a clueless way, a vague smile on his face.

If he thought she was going to be flustered at the sight of a shirtless man (no matter how perfectly made that man was), he had better think again. After all, Kwan did have a job to do.

Now finished with her phone call, Kwan turned to give Remy her full attention. He was now completely dressed and adjusting the tie. Kwan put her hands to her narrow hips. He hadn't shaved that beard!

"When was the last time you shaved?" She looked at him expecting him to clue in to her suggestion.

"I feel like it might have been a Tuesday," Remy replied, touching his scruffy chin in a show of false thoughtfulness.

"Nevermind," she said and approached him, removing a small lidded box from the inside pocket of her suit jacket. The bearded look was working for him in the roguish charm department, and there were other battles to be won. She opened the lidded box to reveal a pin.

"What's that?" Remy asked suspiciously. "A bug? Some kind of tracking device?"

Kwan carefully kept her gaze focused downward, knowing Harrison Snow's seeming lack of respect for personal privacy, and adorned Remy's jacket with the pin. "It's just a lapel pin," she informed him with bemused impatience. She smoothed her thumb over the pin, which was a shiny gold Serval cat logo. Studying him close up, she realized his jacket was adorned with some other accessories she hadn't anticipated. "Where did all this cat hair come from?" she asked, suddenly exasperated. "It's a brand new suit!"

"I dunno, it just seems to manifest itself," Remy said with a shrug.

Kwan's phone beeped alerting her to the absence of time; she had to get LeBeau to the staging area.

"Let's go Mr. LeBeau," Kwan ushered him from the room, chasing after him with a lint brush. They rode the elevator down to the lobby where the rest of the Serval team members were waiting.

Kwan was glad to see Polaris waiting for them. She looked perfect. She wore a one shoulder silver gown with a slit up one side. The bodice was decorated in yellow diamonds and while the diamonds looked to be randomly placed, they were an outline of the Serval cat that appeared at an angle from Lorna's hip up to the shoulder of her dress. Lorna decided on gold shoes to go with the diamonds and she put her bold green hair up in silver and gold clips.

Lorna wasn't shy about looking Remy over as he and Kwan descended in the glass elevator. Lorna was clearly impressed with how good he looked. He was in a dark gray suit, his tie was a Gerry Garcia landscape design in the Serval colors which created a nice contrast to the color of his suit. In the outside pocket was a silk scarf with an elegant image of the serval cat. His cuff links were gold. He looked like he was straight out of a GQ magazine.

Upon their stepping off the elevator, Lorna's face lit up. Remy smiled at her and he walked toward her as if drawn by a magnetic pull. Upon his approach, Remy took Lorna's hand and pressed a kiss to the back of her knuckles. He gallantly offered his arm to her to loop with his own and they walked toward the area Kwan had directed them to. Lorna looked back up at him with a huge smile, she reached up and pinched his scruffy chin playfully.

Kwan looked at them with a smug smile and thought how perfect they were to represent Serval. They looked great together, their individual looks and personality a good representation for the company. The high-profile event they were attending would mean there would be plenty of photos taken of them together.

As she watched them walk arm in arm toward the vehicle waiting to take them to Serval's private airfield, she felt certain by the way they handled themselves that they would look like a couple. Kwan had earlier arranged for LeBeau to attend Serval's HR orientation, expressly forbidding inter-office romances, knowing full well LeBeau would only want what he couldn't have. While watching them depart, Kwan's personal assistant approached Kwan to get information on whatever else needed to be completed. The assistant observed that Gambit and Polaris were cute together. Kwan wholeheartedly agreed. It was just as she'd planned it.

~oOo~

The Serval trio arrived at the Cipriani Wall Street in a dark gray limousine. They were one of a number of limos lined up before the stately Greek Revival building. New York's most prominent citizens and celebrities alike emerged from limos to the calls and flashbulbs of the paparazzi.

"I haven't seen anything this fancy since I crashed one of de Hellfire Club's parties," Remy observed.

"What were you doing at the Hellfire Club?" Pietro asked in his slightly demanding way.

Remy ignored him and announced excitedly while pointing out the window: "Look, it's Lucy Liu!"

"You're not going to act like like this the whole night, are you?" Pietro asked and crossed his arms.

"You're not going to act like that your whole life, are you?" Remy responded in the same tone.

"The both of you need to behave and act like a team," Lorna said while checking her makeup one last time in the reflection of her compact mirror. "Especially in front of the media. There are important people here."

If the two men had any further barbs for one another, they were cut short. It was their turn to disembark and step onto the blue carpet that led to the Cipriani's main entrance.

Impatiently, Pietro had stepped out before the driver had time to come around and open the rear door of the limo. He stood still momentarily as the cameramen and reporters turned their attention to him. Remy too stepped out and then turned to offer Lorna his hand to help her from the interior. As she rose from her seat, the flash of camera bulbs caught her stunning gown.

While the pomp and circumstance of the crowd, cameras, and celebrities was exhilarating, Remy quickly noticed how much of the camera's flash was a blinding experience for them all, he put his arm up and out and brought Lorna closer to his side to help escort her. Once past the initial set of photographers, Remy was able to stop shielding them from the flash and put his arm down to escort Lorna properly. As they descended down the walkway, they stopped and waved to the crowd a few times allowing photographers to snap photos of them.

"Are ya alright?" Remy whispered into Lorna's ear, which was caught on camera. She shook her head to indicate that she was fine. While she was feeling a bit overwhelmed she refused to let anyone see that on her face. She held her head high put on a smile and let Remy lead her into the building.

Pietro was ahead of them by a few steps. He was trying hard to stay with them but they were moving too slow for his preferred pace. He was also noting how close they were and wondered if this was something Alex Summers, Lorna's former flame and leader of a branch of the Avengers, would want to know about or not. Pietro thought he might be making too much of it; LeBeau was a ladies' man and Lorna enjoyed a man's attention.

Once the Serval trio entered Cipriani Wall Street's main lobby, they were asked for their invitations. Remy supplied both Lorna's and his, Pietro provided his own. Once their names were checked off the list, the gentleman gestured for them to move forward into the ballroom.

The ballroom was a glittering gold affair in the same Greek Revival style as the exterior, with marble columns set between arched entryways. A chandelier hung from a coffered ceiling, the golden light reflecting off the shiny marble floor. Under each archway along the wall was a table set with a blue tablecloth. The guests gathered around the tables to admire the various items donated for the event's silent auction. Lorna was immediately drawn to the table bedecked with signature blue boxes tied with white ribbon. Tiffany & Co. had generously donated a selection of exquisite jewelry in silver and blue for the gala. Remy couldn't help but have his attention captured as well.

Pietro eyed Remy with a cold gaze. Remy forced himself to look away from the table to meet Pietro's eyes.

"What?" Remy said innocently while raising his hands.

Pietro didn't comment. He wasn't sure if Remy was staring at the jewelry, or Lorna's exposed midriff.

The trio moved to each auction table along with the flow of guests. There was a European vacation, a collection of fine wines from Italy, a new wardrobe provided by a top New York designer, and various pieces of art up for bid.

"Look at this one," Lorna said, and gestured to a placard set upon an easel. It featured an image of the Avengers dressed in uniform with their headquarters in the background. "Be an Avenger for a day!"

"Maybe you should bid to win," Remy told Pietro. "Convince them mebbe they want you back."

"You go ahead. The only way you'd get in is to pay your way," Pietro commented.

"'Meet the Avengers! Tour their headquarters, take a ride on the quinjet, target practice with Hawkeye -,'" Lorna read.

Remy made an exaggerated gesture as if he were being strangled. Even Pietro had to scoff. Lorna laughed and picked up the fountain pen. "I'm signing you up, Remy. How much should we bid?"

"Don't you dare!" Remy said.

"You'll have to put down six figures at least," Pietro said. "They might take back their charitable donation otherwise."

Lorna pretended to consider, the pen poised over the sign-up sheet. "Let's see…One-hundred thousand dollars for Remy Etienne -," Lorna paused. "How do you spell Etienne, by the way?"

Remy grasped Lorna's hand and pulled her away from the table and against his side. "Give me that pen!"

Lorna laughed, making a half-hearted attempt to pull from Remy's grasp. "But Remy! It's for charity! Think of the children!"

"I'd rather bid on a chance to eat broken glass!" Remy exclaimed.

The two wrestled over the pen, with Remy finally pulling it from Lorna's grip and setting it back onto the table. They were standing very close and laughing breathlessly.

Pietro rolled his eyes. "Now who's behaving like children?" he muttered.

They took a quick look around the room and noticed where the rest of the crowd was going and followed them into the grand ballroom that was reserved for the UNICEF charity gala. The table that was reserved for them under the Serval name and they were seated close to the left side of the stage. All of the winners of awards were seated near each other to make it easy to walk onto the stage and accept the award and make a speech.

The tables were set up to the left and right of the stage, and lined the entire length of the room. They were elegantly decorated with a centerpiece on each table. It was a modern design of a sphere as a symbol of hope similiar to the sphere in Battery Park but with a slight recessed design of the earth. The tables were already set with silverware and linen napkins. On each table, name cards were placed for the guests, directing where they would be seated for the evening. The dance floor separated the tables, and a jazz band had set up on the stage that was directly across from the entrance to the lavish room. The stage would also double for the presentation of awards.

The lights were dimmed twice to signal the guests to be seated, dinner would be served momentarily.

The Avengers were seated at one of the tables near the entrance and furthest away from the stage. Iron Man wore an Armani suit, while the rest of the team wore their Avenger's uniforms. Havok, Scarlet Witch, Wasp, Thor, Captain America and Rogue rounded out the table. Looking around at the team, Tony teased them for wearing their super hero uniforms instead of dressing like he did for this event. Steve reminded him, that they were the Avengers and would be more easily recognized in their uniforms. Despite that, Havok didn't wear his face mask and Rogue kept her hood down on her uniform. Steve also noticed that Tony brought the suit, he just wasn't in it. He rolled his eyes at the thought of Tony showing off again.

"No one said they were going to actually be here," Remy grumbled, catching sight of the back of Tony Stark's glossy head.

Pietro too was discomfited by the Avengers' presence. He sat ramrod straight in his chair.

Dinner was a choice of salmon, chicken or filet mignon. Pietro and Remy chose the filet mignon while Lorna chose the chicken entree. Once dinner was over, dessert and coffee or tea was being served. The master of ceremonies for UNICEF stepped up on to the stage to begin the program for the evening. She explained the charity and its accomplishments and that they are still continuing to help children all over the world. She listed elements of how important it was to continue to support UNICEF. While she was speaking there were slides of UNICEF's work that scrolled with the presentation.

Remy was both bored and perturbed by the event. There were celebrities, businessmen and women, politicians, and other high-profile members of society all gathered in an opulent room congratulating themselves on how helpful they were. Meanwhile, images of abused and starving children appeared on the screen. If the juxtaposition of the two images weren't disconcerting enough, the back of his neck crawled knowing that certain members of the Avengers might be giving him the hairy eyeball behind his back. If Remy had been given Pietro's powers, he would have escaped in a flash. Lorna, on the other hand, was chatting up a fashion designer who also happened to be seated at the table. She appeared to be perfectly at ease. Pietro was stoic as usual. He might have been listening attentively to the presentation or consumed with his rapid-fire thoughts.

Once the explanation of the charity and its function was over, the speaker then wanted to share with the audience members of the community that had helped UNICEF towards their goals. She had several awards she was bestowing upon these companies and individuals that had gone above and beyond for the UNICEF charity.

"This year's Spirit of Compassion Award is presented to an organization that continues to grow UNICEF's mission through technology and innovation," the presenter said. "From putting vehicles with state-of-the-art tracking devices out in the field, to providing each of our volunteers with the newly introduced TabCat tablets so we could remain connected, this company and its founder have improved the lives of thousands. Their most recent brainchild is a unique team of dedicated individuals brought together with the goal of helping the world's citizens in need."

Remy thought drolly: Now I've heard everything.

The presenter continued: "I'd like to present this award to Serval Industries. Accepting on behalf of CEO Harrison Snow is X-Factor team leader, Lorna Dane, also known in the field as Polaris."

Lorna rose from her seat and turned briefly to the applauding crowd with a raised hand. She smiled graciously as she moved to the stage. Once at the podium, she accepted the presented award from UNICEF's CEO and turned to face the audience.

"It is a truly humbling experience to share this evening with you all," Lorna said, acting every part the perfect spokeswoman. "It's through my association with Harrison Snow and the newly reformed X-Factor team that I have gained an appreciation for what Serval Industries hopes to accomplish. That is: a world that is brought closer and made safer through advances in technology and an entrepreneurial spirit. I am proud to be a part of a company that strives to make a difference."

"She seems to be managing this pretty well," Pietro commented, a note of surprise in his tone.

"Yeah, I'm about t'drink de Kool-Aid and buy into dis Serval gig myself," Remy said and applauded Lorna along with the rest of the audience as she descended from the stage.

The presentation ended with hearty applause after the presenter of the awards announced the dollar amount raised that evening. With that, she announced the headlining entertainer of the evening, Michael Bublé, and walked off the stage which allowed the band to set up quickly to entertain the attendees at the gala.

"They might've got Tony Bennett instead," Remy complained.

Pietro fixed his teammate with a wry glare.

The band began to play and the guests got up from their tables to mingle with others at the event. Remy was proud of Lorna and how she handled the acceptance of Harrison Snow's Serval award from UNICEF. Pietro was also proud of her and both men told her, she blushed a little.

"You were great, chère." Remy smiled at her.

"That was impressive, Lorna. I'm sure Serval will appreciate what you've done today." Pietro was sincere, and he found himself smiling at her.

"Would you like to dance?" Remy smiled his most charming smile at Lorna and he held out his arm for her to take.

"I'd love to," Lorna looped her arm into Remy's. Pietro was getting more than annoyed at their interaction. He interrupted them before they could leave for the dance floor.

"You don't need to dance, we've done what we need to here. Let's leave." Pietro was getting impatient with this gala event. Seeing Havok at the back of the room didn't make things easier for him since he was serving as Havok's 'eyes and ears' on Lorna. And discussing Remy and Lorna was not something he was looking forward to. He hadn't planned on it to begin with but now there was no way to avoid it if they were seen dancing together. Truth was he didn't really know what was going on between them, this could be Gambit being Gambit.

"Actually Pietro, Harry said we should mingle. There must be someone else here you could annoy." Remy smirked at Pietro. Knowing he was bugging Quicksilver made him smile more.

"Can't we just go? We did the Serval company thing, let's get out of here," Pietro attempted again, feeling antsy. He couldn't leave without them and he really wanted to avoid Alex. He also noticed Rogue was here as well and that was just another can of worms when it came to Remy.

"Lighten up homme, you should ask a lady to dance," Remy told Pietro as he walked away from Pietro and guided Lorna to the dance floor.

"Do try to make an attempt at being social, Pietro," Lorna instructed as she was led away.

No one else had stepped upon the dance floor, and Remy didn't mind that he and Lorna were the couple to get the rest of the attendees to dance. He thought it would look good on Serval's part, though that wasn't the only reason he asked Lorna to dance. He was hoping she would be receptive to him.

They walked onto the dance floor, she faced him and put her hand on his shoulder and their other hands clasped, Remy's arm was wrapped around Lorna and his hand was low on her back. They pressed against each other and began a classic slow dance to the music. Photographer cameras went off immediately focusing on the couple on the dance floor. No one joined them, they were the center of attention and were getting loads of smiles and admiration from the crowd.

"You look lovely, chère," Remy smiled with a mischievous grin.

Lorna returned the smile, "You look pretty good yourself."

"Me?" Remy asked. "I didn't want t'say before, but I'd be just as happy to get out of here as your brother. I need t'get out early, before I turn back into a bumpkin."

"You don't fool me, Remy. I can see right through your charade. You wear that suit just as easily as you wear that trench coat of yours." She had to ask because of his smile: "You are behaving yourself, I hope."

"I'm being a good boy, I haven't taken anythin' from anyone." He smiled at her again, he had a smoldering look to him this time. Lorna felt giddy, it had been awhile since a man looked at her like this and she was enjoying it very much.

"Well try not to be too good," she smirked at him. "Your bad-boy streak is part of your charm." His thieving and her busting him for thieving was becoming a personal joke between them. They continued their slow dance staring at each other like lovers, smiles and eyes lidded. It was clear to the crowd that they were a terrific power couple and sexy as well. Gambit twirled Lorna and brought her close to him again the constant camera flash as backdrop to their dance.

At the end of the song he dipped her and she was smiling broadly as he was, the crowd applauded and cheered them. The cameras were ignited once more on them. Once he brought her back up he kept his arm around her, they did a slight bow to the crowd and walked off the dance floor to a round of applause. Remy and Lorna wrapped one arm around each other as they walked off the dance floor.

Remy and Lorna decided to walk toward the back of the room where a beverage cart was stationed, and they immediately walked into the Avengers.

The awkward moment was immediate. Remy and Lorna kept their arms wrapped around each other, they both wanted the support of each other while dealing with their exes, who had sour looks on their faces. They inadvertently gripped each other a little tighter, and it didn't go unnoticed.

Quicksilver was immediately at Lorna's side. He needed to do some interference or they would find out that he was the spy that Gambit had accused him of being. To keep the facade up, he needed to show his support for X-Factor. He actually reflected how important to him it was to connect with Lorna. He didn't dwell on his personal thoughts.

He did break the tension in the room. "Look, the Avengers came out to play tonight. What... nothing else going on to occupy your time? No earth shattering event you need to attend to?" Pietro threw as much sarcasm as he could into his words. He knew he was being a dick but he was used to playing that part. He assessed them over in their uniforms and couldn't help one last barb. "Couldn't bother to dress for the occasion?" Quicksilver quirked an eyebrow up as he looked them all over.

"Knock it off, Pietro." Havok was not only annoyed with Quicksilver but was feeling slightly jealous of Gambit. He was also aware that Pietro was doing what he asked him to do and he had to play along. He had not expected to see Remy dancing with Lorna or to see him with his arm wrapped around her. Wasp stepped a little closer to him to remind him she was still here in the room. He recovered quickly and slid a glance at Wasp and took her hand.

"Lorna, you look great," Havok felt a little awkward talking to her. They had split but he was never sure how he felt about her. Yes, he did love her but he wasn't sure if being with her was good for him or her. The situation was similar for Rogue and Remy. He imagined there was some love there but a lot of other issues had come between them. Mostly her distrust of him.

"X-Factor reformed...and under corporate management," Alex began, trying to sound neutral as best he could. "Seems a little odd to me, considering we both worked so long with the government under the same name." The Avengers had learned of Serval's X-Factor, and he had gotten general information out of Pietro. He wasn't sure if Lorna was safe but she at least looked like she was happy. Unfortunately, that was bothering him.

"Yes, well, there are certain things a private corporation can accomplish that fall outside a government role. We're helping people by taking a more offensive position rather than reactive, and I'm enjoying my position of leading a team." Lorna kept a neutral look on her face. Alex nodded.

"There is a lot of pressure leading a team," Alex regretted saying that, he didn't want her to think he thought she wasn't capable or that he questioned her mental stability to lead a team but it was too late now. He was still concerned that she was being taken advantage of, but he could tell from the way she looked at him that expressing that concern now would be unwise.

"I'm well aware of the pressures of leading a team, and we've been successful. I appreciate your vote of confidence," Lorna glared at him. If looks could kill, Alex knew he would be dead.

"I didn't mean it like it sounded, I was just trying to say if you ever need to talk to me, I'm here for you." Alex was hoping that would smooth things over. Wasp squeezed his hand, he squeezed back. It was all the communication they needed.

"I'll keep that in mind," Lorna stared blankly at him. Havok didn't like that look.

Rogue stared at Lorna's dress, she had to admit she looked great and was feeling self conscious because she was in her uniform instead of dressing up for this event. She also noticed how good Remy looked in his suit. She didn't miss his arm around Lorna either. She reminded herself that she put Remy in the friend zone. He had his own reasons for not joining the Avengers at her invitation. He had said that the Avengers was a place for heroes and denied being one himself. She hadn't contradicted him, and she had to wonder if he wasn't hurt by that. The Avengers were not too terribly kind to him in evaluating him for inclusion; an evaluation that was in a confidential government file that Remy had somehow obtained. Stolen, no doubt, which only proved Rogue's own synopsis on Remy's character. He was a thief through and through. While he said there was no love lost, she contributed to the file, stating they couldn't trust him. Those little things eat at you when you least expect them too. Gambit as an Avenger would have been strange enough, but to see Remy in the employ of a corporation was truly a surprise.

"Hey, Remy," Rogue had so many questions for him regarding his involvement with Serval but she knew he wouldn't answer any of them.

"Anna, what brings you to this fancy dress party? Are the Avengers making a charitable contribution?" Remy smiled and was very cavalier in his demeanor.

Rogue answered distractedly: "No...Ah mean yes, we're donating. Ah'm surprised you would be - here." Her eyes darted from Lorna to Pietro. Neither were Remy's usual bedfellows. She was feeling a little uncomfortable with this situation.

Tony had no problem calling a spade a spade or in this case, calling a thief a thief. "So, what's your plan, Gambit? I'm sure you've cased the place, how much have you stolen? Spot any good marks? Or is this some elaborate cover for some other robbery you are committing?" Tony had been on the receiving end of Remy's thievery and he wasn't going to give him any benefit of the doubt.

Before Remy could reply Lorna stated with attitude: "We're here to help people. Are you? Serval is a major contributor to UNICEF, after all. Care to match funds Tony?" Lorna gave him a challenging look and was starting to get irritated with the Avengers and their attitude. Remy moved his hand from her side and up Lorna's back. He rubbed her bare back in slow circles to calm her down. She responded immediately to his touch, though it took a few minutes to bring her ire down. Rogue noticed the action as did Havok, neither were pleased but didn't say anything.

"Yeah, right," Tony wasn't buying it. "I can easily match funds Ms. Dane." He gave her a haughty look. He then looked at Remy, he wasn't done with him yet.

"Nice suit, Gambit. My compliments to whomever you stole it from." Tony had a arrogant look on his face.

"I had a fancier suit than this, but I found it to be a little large in the head area. I hope Rhodey returned it to you in good enough condition." Remy's smile was less than genuine.

"That condition being its basic component parts, then yes, most of them were returned to me. As it responds to voice commands, I wonder if perhaps you would have found the suit to perform better if you were able to speak coherent English." Tony was still a bit annoyed at Gambit for stealing the suit to begin with, the fact he had to change his security protocols to account for Gambit was an irritant for him. He had expected better from the X-Men.

"It's a wonder you can speak at all, what with that silver spoon in ya mouth," Remy retorted.

Pietro might have laughed, but he quickly covered it up with a throat-clearing sound. Gambit was far more amusing when Pietro himself wasn't the victim of the thief's verbal jabs.

"I'm still having trouble understanding you," Tony told Remy and then cast his glare at Pietro. "Or why you, either of you, are here."

"They are here with me as members of X-Factor. I recruited them, seeing how their talents were being wasted elsewhere," Lorna said hotly.

"Well then, Ms. Dane, I once again have to question your reasoning," was Tony's reply.

Lorna raised her hand, Remy knew she was about to use her powers. He grabbed her hand, raised it to his lips and kissed it. Lorna was surprised and the distraction kept her from blasting the Avengers out of the room. He held her hand, and began a rhythmic rubbing of her hand while the two groups stared at each other. Lorna was aware of the manipulation and to her surprise wasn't angry with him. She was glad he was keeping her sane, not that she would ever say that out loud.

Steve Rogers, aka Captain America, was fed up with this behavior and was aware the situation was becoming volatile. "Okay, okay, enough. There is no need for this. We're all trying to help people. I think that is the point." He gave Lorna a sincere look: "It was good meeting X-Factor Lorna. Serval Industries' new team seems like…an interesting endeavor." He glanced at the Avengers and they were in agreement with him, except for Tony.

"Excuse me," said a voice. "If I might have a word." The groups turned to see a young woman from the press. She was attended by a photographer.

"Certainly," Tony answered, giving the reporter a winning smile.

The reporter seemed slightly embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I meant to speak with the the new X-Factor team. We were very interested in following up with the recent press release announcing the team's formation."

Tony's expression was nonplussed.

The reporter turned to Lorna. "Aside from the contributions made to UNICEF, most of which consist of revealing the latest technological gadgetry, is there any other reason you're serving as Serval's ambassadors tonight?" the reporter asked Lorna. Tony instantly perked up. Clearly, the reporter was forming a biased question.

Lorna was still grinding her teeth in frustration over her encounter with the Avengers. "Well, it almost sounds as though you're leading one to believe Serval has ulterior motives for participation in tonight's event."

"It does seem an unusual way to unveil a new superhero team to the public," the reporter commented.

"Not so unusual to be at a charity event to help kids when all three of us was orphaned at one point during our childhood," Remy interjected. The reporter's attention was immediately diverted to him. "I mean, I'm fortunate I was taken in. Couldn't ask for a better dad, me. But not so many are as lucky. I'm just as quick to question a body's motivation as you, cherie," He smiled winningly at the reporter, his flattering tone conveying that he thought her quick-witted and clever for her investigative skills. His accent had suddenly become a lot thicker. "In this particular case, we're perfectly suited to attend this event. We'd all very much like to give kids a chance to grow up healthy and safe, somethin' we didn't get to have our own selves."

Both Tony and Pietro goggled at Remy's blatant schmoozery, but the reporter was completely taken in by Remy's direct gaze and accented words.

"You could speak to our publicist for a more polished statement," Remy continued. "But I'd more'n welcome another chance t'talk to you, darlin'."

"Oh, you've got to be -," Alex began.

"I would love to have a chance to have a sit-down interview with each of you," the now star-struck reporter gushed. "Perhaps a biographical sketch?"

Lorna produced a card from her clutch. "Here is my business card. Please contact our offices and we can make arrangements." She cast a sliding glance at Remy and he grinned openly at her.

"Unbelievable," Tony remarked.

"Would you care to make a statement, Mr. Stark?" the reporter asked. "About Serval Industries? How does Stark Industries International intend to belatedly respond to Serval's launch of the new TabCat tablet?"

"Wha-what?"

Given the break in the conversation, the X-Factor team made quick their escape. Though Tony Stark did have one last passing comment for Gambit: "Leave the silverware."

Remy glared at him, but said nothing. Pietro chuckled at the comment.

Rogue was relieved to see them go, she didn't like feeling underdressed and was a little jealous at how good Lorna looked. She was also surprised at her reaction of thinking that Lorna was just too close to Remy, that she shouldn't be so familiar with him. While she reminded herself she ended their relationship, she wasn't ready to see him with someone else. She knew Joelle was a passing fancy for him. Lorna was another matter completely and she wasn't sure how she felt about it. Remy's kissing Lorna's hand and rubbing her back was not something Rogue wanted to see.

Lorna called out to Tony: "Don't forget to match funds." Tony nodded at her and waved his hand in a way that indicated he would take care of it, then was left with the reporter.

While Alex lead this team, he was relieved that Steve had intervened earlier, he was conflicted as always when it came to Lorna. He hadn't expected his reaction to Lorna nor did he expect to feel a twinge of jealously with Gambit. He needed to leave just to clear his head. Holding Wasp's hand, he led the group out of the gala. He gave Pietro a look that said he would be in contact. Gambit noticed immediately. Pietro quickly schooled his expression and looked around the room.

Remy looked at Pietro with accusation in his eyes, "Ya should come clean, you are spying on us for the Avengers."

"I am not spying." Pietro looked put out by Remy's comments, he thought it would be the only way to convince Remy. "Can we go now?" Quicksilver was irritated with Gambit.

"Admit you're a spy." Remy said it casually as if he knew. Pietro was finding it hard to fool Remy. All he could do was deny but it was never enough for Gambit.

"Why do we go through this all the time - what is it going take to convince you I'm on this team because I want to be?" Quicksilver was exhausted by Gambit. He had no idea how tough he could be. Gambit was making his "eyes and ears" project for Alex a lot more challenging than he thought.

"Why should I believe you? I noticed the look he gave you. Clearly, you and Havok had some sort of agreement." Remy wasn't giving up on what his trained thief's eye deemed was a communication between Havok and Quicksilver. He was in a challenging mood all of the sudden. Quicksilver now wanted the guy romancing his sister back, just to get out of the situation. How bad had it become when the guy you didn't like should romance your sister so that you can avoid questions. It was ugly all around for him. He couldn't decide what to do, either take him on or let it go. Lorna took the decision out of his hands.

"Guys, give it a rest. Your constant bickering is annoying. And you can let go of my hand now Remy." Remy released her hand but kept his other one on her back. She gave him a look and he whispered to her that she liked him touching her. Lorna flushed a little but rolled her eyes anyway, he was incorrigible. Still she was annoyed at both men in her life.

"We're done here, let's go." Lorna took the lead, Gambit and Quicksilver followed her out the of the ballroom. As they exited the room, there were a group of reporters waiting for the attendees to leave, hoping to get a sound bite they could use for their respective media forms.

Remy escorted Lorna to their waiting limousine. Pietro kept pace with them this time. They paused for pictures a couple of times. Once they reached the limousine, the driver opened the door for Lorna and she slipped into the vehicle. Remy slid in next to her. Quicksilver walked to the other side of the car and waited for the driver to open the door and let him enter the limo.

After the limousine was cruising down the street, Remy reached for the champagne that was chilled in little bar inside the limo, he used his powers to easily pop the cork. He then poured some for all of them. "Time to celebrate," Remy handed a glass to Lorna and then one to Pietro.

"What are we celebrating?" Pietro was just glad they weren't at the gala anymore. He could finally relax and not deal with the Avengers.

Remy ignored Quicksilver, he held is glass up and looked at Lorna, "To our lovely leader, you were terrific tonight." Remy clinked his glass with Lorna's and smiled seductively at her.

Lorna returned the smile and sipped the bubbly. "Thanks, but you guys were both very helpful to me tonight and you behaved too." Lorna relaxed in the seat. She kicked her shoes off so that her feet would be more comfortable.

Remy unbuttoned his suit jacket and placed his arm on the back of the seat, Pietro immediately rolled his eyes. However, he wasn't going to say anything. Remy poured them a second glass.

The second glass made them a little more chatty about the event, the topics ranged from the food to all of the celebrities in attendance. Lorna scooted over to Remy to lean on him, so that she could put her legs up on the seat. He merely smiled at her, which encouraged her to get more comfortable. She had to admit to herself, she was enjoying his company a little too much but it felt good to relax.

Gambit and Quicksilver were in a verbal chess match, that was more friendly than their usual repartee. She decided to not be bothered by it. Remy's arm had slipped from the back of the seat to her arm where he rubbed her in a soothing manner.

It wasn't long before they were at the private airfield and their waiting plane to take them back to Serval Industries.

~oOo~

They arrived back at Serval Industries complex. They walked into the lobby after greeting the evening guard. Lorna signed them all in and they headed toward the voice activated glass elevator. Once they got to their floor where their apartments were located, Pietro zipped off right away. Remy held his arm out once more to escort Lorna to her apartment. When they got to her door, they looked at each other with some longing in their eyes.

"I had a wonderful time, thank you. Dinner was great and I enjoyed dancing with you." Lorna blushed a little but kept eye contact with Remy. "Thank you for stepping in with that reporter."

"Oui, it was fun chere," he smiled at her. He was charmed by her blushing. He leaned down, and kissed her. She wasn't sure at first but then kissed him back. While he wanted to deepen the kiss, he knew better. When he pulled away, they looked at each other not sure where this was going. Remy knew Lorna needed the Serval Industries job, not for the money but for her own peace of mind. He knew to call it a night.

"Goodnight, Lorna." He kissed her hand, smiled and walked toward his apartment. She watched him walk away and smiled to herself and was giddy when she entered her apartment. She had no idea what she was going to do about him but sleeping on it was a good idea.

~oOo~

Harrison Snow was sitting in his office, going over the footage from the nanobot. He was pleased with how good his team looked at the charity gala. The showdown with the Avengers intrigued him. He had rewound the footage to look at it in more depth when Linda Kwan walked in with several copies of a newspaper.

"Good morning, Mr. Snow." Linda Kwan bowed.

"Good morning, Linda." Harrison Snow and Linda Kwan had several meetings a day every week. He liked being appraised of what her department was doing and make himself available if she needed his influence with any project she was working on. In addition he also had ideas for the PR department as well.

"I thought you might be interested in reading the New York Post this morning," Kwan said and extended a copy of the paper to him.

"Newsprint?" Snow remarked. "When I can just as easily read the news on my portable device?"

"You might want the hard copy for your clipping file," Kwan said. "Serval is mentioned on Page Six."

"The gossip column?" Snow said, accepting the paper with an amused smile.

"There were other papers mentioning the charity event and of course, it's on the internet. But, I think you'd like to see this." She had the New York Post already opened to Page Six that featured pictures of Remy and Lorna.

"This is your work, Linda?" Snow said, knowing the answer. Harrison was pleased with the photographs and captions that went with the pictures. He liked that Serval looked favorably, he glanced through the article quickly. "Excellent! They'll be America's sweethearts. Guessing from these photos, Dane and LeBeau seem to believe their own roles." With a pleased expression on his face, he turned back to his nanobot feed. "Contact The Post for the print proofs. I'd like to have several of these framed."

"Is there anything else for today?" Linda Kwan wanted to know which projects were the ones that needed to be addressed for the day.

"No. I've got a few files to go through." Linda knew he was going over the footage of the nanobot that was in Lorna's eye but said nothing, and walked out of his office.

~oOo~

Remy's phone rang early the next day and he groaned. He just wanted to sleep in just for a little while longer. He knew it was his father; he had programmed a specific ringtone for Jean-Luc (The Imperial March from Star Wars. "Remy, I am your father."). He wasn't in a hurry to answer it, but he also knew he couldn't ignore his dad. He looked at his phone on the nightstand but discovered his kittens had boxed him in, making it difficult for him to maneuver without waking them. He chuckled to himself, the little shits were completely taking over. When did that happen? Figaro was at his shoulder as always, Lucifer on his upper thigh and Oliver at his side. He was able to stretch enough without disturbing his little buddies to answer the phone.

"'Ello," Remy tried not to yawn, but did anyway. He leaned himself up on his bed as best he could without disturbing the kittens. Figaro was the only one put out because he moved his shoulder, he petted her, and settled her near him. Lucifer readjusted himself on Remy's leg. Oliver was oblivious at his side.

"Rise and shine, son. How are you? Busy night?" The way Jean-Luc asked the question alerted Remy that there was something he should know or that he had been caught doing something.

"I'm tired. It's early." Remy recounted the last few days in his head and could not think of a reason why Jean-Luc was calling or why he should sound concerned. "Why do you ask?"

"Your public persona is quite the disguise for the leader of the Thieves Guild," Jean-Luc sounded proud. It was not a tactic taken by the Guild before and he thought it was a good way to hide in plain sight. However being in the public eye had its own set of problems as well and he needed Remy to understand that.

"You'll need to keep some balance, son. Don't become too public, it might make things a bit more difficult. Not that you couldn't handle it." Jean-Luc wanted to help his son and guide him if he could. Sometimes with Remy you had to make things very clear to him.

Remy was confused, he had no idea what Jean-Luc was going on about. He had to ask: "Whaddaya talkin' about?"

"You and your girl are in the New York Post this mornin'. Gotta admit, you look great together. She's a lovely lady, Remy." Jean-Luc liked this lady, he thought she would be great for his boy.

"Wha-?," Remy was surprised, yes. He knew pictures would be taken but with all the celebrities in attendance, how could he and Lorna end up in the New York Post? And he wasn't ready to discuss whatever relationship he had with Lorna, at least not yet. "What're you doin' readin' that rag, anyhow?"

"I like to keep abreast of my celebrity gossip," Jean-Luc said dryly. "Especially when my son has become one of them. There is a whole article on the UNICEF charity ball and Serval's donation with a couple of pictures of you and Ms. Dane. One where you're kissing her cheek, the other is where you dipped her on the dance floor. It goes on about X-Factor, and its involvement with Serval." Jean-Luc planned on framing the article. He also planned on stealing the photographs from the New York Post.

"Ya kiddin' me right?" Remy was in disbelief.

"As much as I'm enjoying givin' you a hard time, I'm not kidding," Jean-Luc sounded more serious, he needed Remy to take things a bit more seriously when it came to the Guild. He understood his desire to do things his way, but there were still some things, he was going to have to be more cautious with.

"L'enfer," Remy wasn't sure what to make of it, Jean-Luc was right. He would have to keep an eye on how much publicity he was getting. He couldn't have reporters snooping into his personal life, it could be bad for him and the Guild.

"So when can I expect t'see grandchildren?" Jean-Luc prompted. "Seems like ya might've got t'work on that already?"

"Hey, now- I'm not- we didn't. We're not even-! Mind your own business!" Remy was exasperated.

Jean-Luc laughed. Feeling that he gave his son enough guidance he needed to end the call. "You've done a good job charmin' the reporters, I'll give ya that. I've gotta a few things to do, I'll talk to you soon." Jean-Luc needed to get information on the New York Post and plan his job, protecting his son was important to him.

"Alright, thanks for callin,'" Remy said grumpily and ended the call. Remy got up to shower and his kittens objected to his leaving the bed. He gave them all pats, played with them and led them to the kitchen to be fed. He watched them dive into their food and he went to the bathroom to shower. He toweled off and checked his computer, he needed to lookup the New York Post Page Six on their website. He was floored to see the images and the article about Serval. They had an entire photo gallery of the event, which he was relieved to see the celebrities were the main focus. He printed out the article and decided he would go get Lorna and himself some breakfast, plus a physical copy of The Post.

As he suspected, Jean-Luc left some some things out in their phone conversation. The Post reported that he and Lorna were a couple, the kissing picture wasn't actually kissing; but the camera angle make it look like he was kissing Lorna. The article was mostly accurate if a bit sensationalized and was good for Serval's PR department. He imagined Linda Kwan would be ecstatic about the publicity. Harry on the other hand he wasn't too sure about. Hadn't he been warned during that boring employee orientation meeting about canoodling with Serval staff? If he was going to get fired over this, that was no big deal. He didn't want to risk Lorna her job though, she cared about her leadership role too much.

Remy arrived at Lorna's apartment with breakfast sandwiches and coffee from a local deli, and a couple of copies of the New York Post under his arm. He knocked on the door. Lorna answered and she was still in her robe towel drying her hair. "Hi, Remy," she was glad to see him. She had thought about that kiss a bit too much but was trying not to show it.

"I brought breakfast and something you should see." Remy smiled at her also remembering their kiss. Then smothered the grin, trying to remember Serval's HR policy. Did she have to answer the door in a robe?

"Come in." She widened the opening of the door to her apartment and gestured toward an island table with chairs near her kitchen area. While he set up breakfast she got dressed.

They ate breakfast and talked about the gala event and all the celebrities they had seen in attendance. Neither brought up the Avengers. Once breakfast was over and everything was cleared away, Remy opened up the New York Post to show Lorna the article on Serval, and the pictures of them.

"Nice pictures of us, but who would be dumb enough to believe this? They're just sensationalizing the event to sell papers." Remy smiled at her. He didn't want her feel any pressure from the event in regards to them, though he wasn't sure if there was a 'them' at this point or not.

Lorna closed in on Remy sitting at the table, who was looking at the paper. He turned to show her something else and noticed how close she was to him. He looked up into her face, realizing there was a change in the atmosphere. He was curious as to what she was going to do.

"I'd believe it," she cupped his face and kissed him passionately. The kiss was becoming more exploratory and intense. Remy tried to slow things down just a little bit, but Lorna was not having any of that. Her convincing argument via kissing made him lost to the feeling. He gave in to her passion and was feeling it strongly as well, he thought he couldn't get enough. It had been a long time since someone was genuinely this affectionate with him. Screw HR and their stupid interoffice romance policy, anyway.

When they finally broke for air, both were turned on and out of breath. Lorna who still had his face in her hands rubbed his cheeks affectionately with her fingers, his beard felt soft. She ran one hand through his hair. He pulled Lorna onto his lap, and held her close to him. He rubbed her back and ran his hands along her body. He pulled her toward him and they kissed again more leisurely. When Remy decided to pull away to talk about what they were doing, there was a knock at the door.

"Ya expecting anyone?" Remy asked Lorna. She also had a look of surprise on her face.

"No, I don't even have a meeting with Harrison today. There shouldn't be anyone at the door." She supposed that Harrison had another mission for them, but they usually had a bit more time between missions. Plus, she was enjoying Remy too much and was disappointed that their moment was blown. Lorna hopped off his lap and went to answer the door.

Remy trailed after her. Since they were living at Serval's main headquarters, unless is was Harry, Linda or Pietro, he couldn't think of anyone who would be knocking. He certainly would not have guessed the person standing there when Lorna opened the door. The guest gazed coldly at Lorna before turning to Gambit. Remy groaned to himself and for a another time in a few weeks, he felt like he was screwed again.

Lorna was shocked to see the tall, stern, silver-haired visitor standing in front of her.

"Father?" she asked.

~oOo~

To be continued? Maybe? LOL

Author's notes:

Inspired and based on All-New X-Factor #1-3 written by Peter David aka PAD. Corporate company, Serval Industries hires their own superhero team X-Factor to further their goals. Harrison Snow is the owner/CEO, and Linda Kwan is the pr person. Harry is Gambit's nickname for Harrison, and Harrison Snow is not fond of it - leaked Serval files - Marvel's website.

All events referenced - nanobot, mutant revenge on Pietro, Lorna's bad reaction to the kitten has happened in the issues listed. (All-New X-Factor #1-3)

Borya Cich is from the Gambit solo, he had a collection of tech, magical and whatever other items that he would sell. Introduced in Gambit #1.

Astonishing XMen #62, Gambit inherits kittens. Kitten names from Gambit #15 and ANXF #3. They are Disney cat names confirmed by a tweet via PAD. Oliver is the grey cat from Gambit solo #15. The orange cat is Lucifer and the white cat is Figaro from ANXF #3.

Avengers file on Gambit's character for inclusion to the Avengers in Gambit #16, Rogue says the they can't trust him.

Uncanny Avengers is the Unity team for the Marvel Universe. They are a goodwill team of Avengers and Xmen working together. Iron Man is not in the Uncanny Avengers book, but he is an Avenger so he was included in the story. Gambit has stolen from him in the Gambit solo book, (Gambit #13). Havok and Wasp romance is based on what I've read online from UA fan threads.

Rogue put Gambit in the friend zone in Xmen Legacy #275.

Joelle is a character that appeared in the Gambit solo series.

Aaron Hill and Charlotte are OC's.

Disney cats:

Oliver - Oliver & Company

Lucifer - Cinderella

Figaro - Pinocchio


End file.
